The Butterfly's Wings
by Love Psycho
Summary: A quick thought - what if Namikaze Minato had been born a girl? Add in an entire clan of Namikaze's and a crazy mother and you get...what? Merely a quick test story, the real one might come through though. Naruto AU Fem!Minato Rated for safety Read ANs


Disclaimer: I don't own _**Naruto**_. End of the issue. Let's move on now. …why are you still here?

A/N: This...is kinda an extended outline. It's not really complete, but I'd thought I'd post it anyways. This is kinda a "what if the Yondaime was a woman?" story. Which is interesting enough, then I reread Furuba again. And a certain situation – which I won't talked about in case of spoilers though the story would probably tell you a lot – sorta inspired me. I then combined it with the Snow White tale – I just recently, at the time of the creation of this bunny, gotten a few Snow White retellings, and one had an introduction that talked about the different versions and kinda dived into the tale. It was interesting, so I pulled that into my story, though the elements I wanted to show don't really show up in this.

So, I kinda got this thing. I'm hoping to one day finish this, put it down as a multi-chapter fic, and maybe write the sequel of how it all effects the future – aka Naruto's story.

I would like feedback, mostly because this is still really a work in progress.

Other than that, I hope you enjoy this sneak peak into a world that might have been.

**EDIT!**: I changed Fujiko's name to Momoko. And did another grammar/spelling check.

-start-

…...  
><em>The Butterfly's Wings<em>

When he was younger, he never thought of himself as really being a girl in body. Perhaps it had to do with the way he was raised – only a few choose to risk the rage of clan head's wife's rage over his true gender.

"Never forget, that despite how you are raised, you are a girl underneath it all. It will be important one day." So said Honda Ranko, the cook for the lower levels of the clan, the levels reserved for the servants and lowest family members. He merely looked at her wide eyed and nodded. He didn't really understand it yet, but he tucked it in a corner of his mind.

Back then, he thought he was just another of the Namikaze Clan, nothing special. He was cared for by the servants and lowest family members, the ones who never would be considered to be ninjas. It was only much later that he saw his birth parents.

His name is Namikaze Minato and he is five years old.

-line break-

When he was six, he was finally shown to the man and woman he was told were his parents. His father smiled at him, and commented on much he looked like him, with his blond hair and blue eyes. Minato stared solemnly and wondered why he said that. The man before him, Namikaze Akira, was pale and sickly, and had been pulled from the shinobi forces of Konohagakura no Sato a few years before he was born, due to the genetic sickness he finally started to succumbed to.

Then his attention was drawn to the woman he was suppose to call mother. His breath caught – she was beautiful, with dark eyes and hair the color of the bark on trees and just as alive. She stared distantly at him, more concerned with how her attendants were taking care of her. And Minato was left as cold as her name, Rei, suggested.

And he had to wonder – was she really his birth mother? Wouldn't it make more sense for her to be his stepmother? Especially considering the whispers that told him that it was her that ordered her _daughter_ to be raised as her _son_.

As he watched Namikaze Rei alternatively be pampered and sooth her husbands pains, Minato felt a brief flicker of desire. A desire to be a woman.

But that was thrown away by the news his education was to truly begin.

-line break-

At six, he had long mastered the complicated kanji and the more simple hiragana and katakana, and could do slightly advanced math. He was praised as a genius by the lower levels and the higher levels both.

From his parents, he got a brief smile from Akira and a stiff look from Rei, who told him to go back and work harder.

He learned history at this point and about the ninja. This knowledge sparked something in the somewhat apathetic child – it almost seemed adventurous, though he also had real ninja telling him stories that proved it was far from glorious.

At that moment, Minato decided that he had to get his parents attention – they were the heads of the family after all. And since they were ninja, though retired now to tend to the duties of being clan heads, Minato figured the best way to gain that attention.

He would become Hokage. They would have to notice him then.

It should be mentioned, that this all came from a desire to prove himself worthy of carrying the family name, having only recently realized that being the son of the clan heads made him heir. It had nothing to do with family feelings – he didn't want his _father_ or _mother_ to be proud of him.

But looking at Ranko-san, who was busy in the kitchen once more, while Minato worked quietly in the corner on his homework, he thought that he would be able to protect her when he was a ninja.

She was his mother, when it came down to it, after all.

-line break-

When he was eight, the distant feelings that he suffered during his youth had disappeared, and he was a much friendlier and happy child.

He entered the Academy that year, smiled and made friends. But one in particular stood out.

Her name was Uzumaki Kushina. She had bright red hair and a chubby face that made her look somewhat tomato like, but after she beat up the guys who called her that, they called her something else.

They called her the _Akai Chishio no Habanero_, the Red-Hot Blooded Habanero. She also said that she would be Hokage, the first female one in fact.

And Minato was drawn to her for some reason. Maybe it had to do with the fact they kinda had the same dream. Maybe it was her remark of "first _female_ Hokage" that somehow reminded him that _he_ was born a _she_. Either way, he decided to be friends with her.

Their first meetings were not nice. Kushina was irritated by him and considered him "flaky" and "girly" at first. But over time, with the patience Minato had cultivated over the years, he cracked through the hot shell she surrounded herself with. And they became fast friends. Best friends even.

At ten years of age, though, Minato took the early exam and passed with flying colors. Kushina looked at him and scowled, then proclaimed she would catch up, no matter how long it took. Minato smiled and said he looked forwards to it. And Kushina smiled back.

When he came home though, it was not celebrated. For that very day, at the exact moment that Minato got his first hiate-te, his birth father, the clan head Namikaze Akira, passed away.

His mother was distraught and clung to her husband's corpse with a strength that defied logic. It took a long time for them to calm her down and Minato was forgotten in the rush.

Minato felt a pang of sorrow and regret. Though they came from the fact he would never have Namikaze Akira acknowledge him as his son or maybe, secretly, his _daughter_.

The funeral came the day the genin teams were assigned and thus Minato skipped out on it. He didn't see Rei's mental state deteriorate, or hear the clan council decide that Minato would only take the clan head seat when he was twenty-one, and that until then, his uncle Kotarō was to head the family.

He was too busy getting to know his team and his strange sensei.

When he got home, he was informed. But it didn't really impact him. He was still ten years old – twenty-one was eleven years in the future for him.

-line break-

He got along with his team. Uotani Yumiko was from a clanless shinobi family and yet was competent and friendly. Akimichi Choubo was from a clan, and thus somewhat understood Minato's feelings of living up to the clan's expectations.

But they were both respectful to him, which when asked they said,

"Unlike us, you are to be clan head. If we weren't polite to you, our parents would be most upset."

Minato nodded and understood, if only a little. He saw people as _people_, and that was it.

His sensei wasn't like that. He was Kusagi Jiraiya and had been taught by the Sandaime Hokage, along side Takeru Orochimaru and Senju Tsunade. He was big pervert and sometimes took time off to peep in the bathhouse. Despite that he was a good teacher and honestly took care of them.

This went on for three years, upon which they entered and passed the chuunin exam. Jiraiya still headed their team, due to their age of course.

Then came the mission from hell.

-line break-

It hadn't suppose to be like that. The man had only thought he needed C-Rank level protection, and for him that was so. But one of the people that tagged along side the man's caravan had something Kirigakura no Sato wanted, badly enough to send high ranked shinobi.

And things got bloody.

At the end of it all, among the team only Minato other than Jiraiya had managed to stay alive, and that was partially because Yumiko took a death blow for him.

That night, Jiraiya held him close and let him cry. He had lost two good friends of his because of a stupid complication.

After he calmed down, he vowed he would protect others no matter the cost to himself. And Jiraiya had understood.

When he came home, he avoided the servants and clan members and headed straight to his room. Where he stared out the window and thought about how faster he wished he had been. And that thought slowly led him to the little Fuinjutsu that Jiraiya had taught the team, and made him recall he was told by Jiraiya he had a talent for it.

He went to sleep, with a mental marker to convince Jiraiya to teach him more about Fuinjutsu.

-line break-

He was woken up later that night by a pain in his lower abdomen and the scent of blood in the air. When he look down, there was blood coming from him.

He panicked.

The medic nin had check him out, but he feared that they had accidentally missed something, despite the medic being from his clan, as was usual.

He fell into old patterns and raced to Ranko-san's door in fear. Seeing Minato in tears she ushered him in and sat him down.

When he told her what was happening, she told him to calm down. After wiping his face of tears she sighed.

"You are becoming a woman, Minato." Was what she said.

Minato froze at the remark of his true womanhood. When he looked fearfully up at her, having noticed that since the years Akira had died, Rei had gotten even more violent in her punishments, she merely smiled.

"Rei-sama can't blame me for telling you this. Minato, you are a woman. What is happening is your first menstrual session."

As Ranko explained and made a pot of hot herbal tea to deal with the pain Minato began to relax.

At the end, with Minato washed with a special object inserted to halt the flow, Ranko sighed. "I will have to tell Rei-sama. She ordered to be informed of any such developments."

Minato nodded, and allowed himself/herself to be put back to bed.

The next morning he was called to Rei's rooms. Upon entering, he was grabbed and screamed at by Rei. He couldn't quite understand everything, but it involved the fact that he was turning into a woman.

"You are not allowed to be this way!" She screamed in his face. "You will not take it away from me! And you will not be a woman, ever!"

Eventually, Minato was pulled away from Rei by an attendant, as the rest crowded around her and tried to calm her down.

And Minato, who for the first time saw Rei up close and personal during a rage, retreated from womanhood.

On Rei's orders, for there was no other way to calm her down, a genjutsu seal was placed on Minato, one that would help hide Minato's developments, no matter what. Minato, who had always used an excuse of not being comfortable bathing with others – though that had been supplied by Jiraiya – didn't truly see the problem with that. But Ranko had cried a bit at that, and Minato didn't quite understand.

"Oh, you're understand when you meet the one."

He didn't understand that very well, and put it in the corner of his mind left for such things.

-line break-

The next day, despite the lingering pain of his period, Minato studied with Jiraiya about seals. As the days became months and the months became years he forgot about all that.

Until the day Kushina, having become a ninja awhile back, was kidnapped.

He followed her, using the hair that he was quick to notice she left behind. He saved her. And she smiled in a way that made him realize...

He couldn't be what she wanted.

When she confronted him on it, he did his best to be vague. But somehow things got over turned and...

She found out.

She was horrified. Not because Minato was really a girl, but because _her_ – she insisted on that pronoun – clan made her grow up a guy.

She decided to tell him about being a girl and Minato listened. And thus was a friendship repaired before it even broke.

Soon afterwards, Minato became a Jounin sensei. And around the same time, war broke out.

And Minato used the _**Hirashin no Jutsu**_, a complex seal/ninjutsu work to its full effects for the first time.

He became known as _Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō_, Konoha's Yellow Flash for this. Jiraiya approached him and told him of a prophecy then, that suggested that he might be the one to change the world.

Minato doubted that. He couldn't even change his clan's mind about his gender despite now being clan head, so how was he suppose to change the world?

And, no matter how fast he had gotten, he still failed. Uchiha Obito, one of his students, died and gifted one of his newly awoken Sharingan eyes to his teammate Hatake Kakashi.

Minato was quick to stand up for him, and pulled in the other clans as well, when the Uchiha argued about Kakashi having a Sharingan. They calmed down under his influence, but grumbled a bit. They eventually excepted it as they saw how Kakashi was quick to both respect it and use it well.

And then the war ended.

And Namikaze Minato was elected Yondaime Hokage.

-line break-

He gave back the clan head seat to his uncle. He was filled with work enough as it was when it came to the Hokage duties, he didn't have time to be clan head as well.

His birth mother was still there, sowing discord among the clan, and Minato had to use the Hokage's influence to convince them to stop before war broke out among them that would effect the rest of the village.

Then Kushina was kidnapped again. Once again, Minato raced to the rescue, but with even more on his shoulders. For this time Kushina was the Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi no Kitsune and all who knew feared that it would be released.

And it was – if only partially. Kushina managed to hold it back, if only enough to protect Minato and the ANBU who had come with him. With desperate thinking and Kushina's encouragement, Minato grabbed the Kyuubi and sealed it again.

Protests came from all around him as he sealed in within _himself_. He couldn't do that to anyone else. But with her last breath Kushina supported him and passed her special chakra to him, somehow, to aid in containing it. It was possible it only worked because Kushina was stubborn unlike any other and because she wasn't quite thinking it through, as she breathed her last.

But when Minato collapsed, it was inevitable that the ANBU medics among the team would examine him.

And it was also inevitable that they were discover _her_.

-line break-

When Minato woke up, he didn't immediately open his eyes. His shinobi training made him check with his senses to see what was around him. When there was nothing hostile to pick up and he recognized the chakra around him as the ANBU, he opened them.

One of them was staring down at him. Though the phoenix mask covered his features, there was a serious air about him.

He stared at him a little longer then turned to to face the entrance of the cave they obviously took shelter in, the sound of rain coming down by the bathtub load was proof enough.

"Namikaze-sama is awake."

Soon there were the rest of the team around him, the two medics – a Swallow and Sparrow mask each – the closest. They asked him questions and helped him sit up. After a bit, even the medics fell silent, like they didn't know what to say. Minato realized they wanted to ask him something and opened his mouth to encourage them when Phoenix stopped him.

"Why are you disguised as a man, Namikaze-sama?"

Minato froze. How did they...

Right, the medics. For so long it had only been his clan's medics who would look after him, since they didn't want their secret and shame revealed.

Minato looked down and considered things. He then took a deep breath and began to explain, like he once did to Kushina – and that, was a painful thought, so he pushed it away for now.

At the end of the explanation, Phoenix cursed and punched the wall. Minato was confused, as the entire squad was upset by this the same way Kushina had been.

A woman in a Heron mask was the first to answer his question. "You...they took a lot from you. That kind of thing..."

The man in the Lion mask nodded in agreement. "You should be a woman."

Minato remembered Rei-sama's rage and shook his head violently. "I..." He couldn't explain it, but Rei-sama was the one who would always scare him. The woman hated him, he knew that for certain.

No. He suddenly realized. Rei-sama hated _her_, Minato the _woman_. Minato the _man_ wasn't considered a threat to her.

Seeing her reluctance to reveal herself, the ANBU exchanged looks.

The man in the Golden Pheasant mask spoke then. "Make it a SS-class secret."

Both Minato and the others stared at him. A SS-class secret from a Hokage could only be revealed if the Hokage who gave that order told them to. This had to do with the fact it involved a ritual that tied all the parties involved together, with the Hokage as the focus. Once the ritual was complete, only the Hokage could choose to reveal it or who could reveal it. And anything to do with the secret was automatically included.

All the masks looked at each other – Phoenix, Lion, Golden Pheasant, Mandarin Duck, Swallow, Heron, Stag, Peacock, Pigeon, Sparrow, Eagle, and White Crane. Then they all turned and said.

"Make it so, Hokage-sama."

And Minato, not knowing what else to do, agreed.

-line break-

The council was in an uproar. Minato sealing the Kyuubi in himself had caused division to irrupt between the council members.

Finally tired of it, Minato slammed his hands on the desk, amplified by chakra, and snarled.

"I did what was best at the time. I would hardly be a good Hokage if I wasn't willing to shoulder a burden such as this!"

The council members winced and slowly calmed down. After some more discussion, it was decided that this would be a S-class secret and, on the pain of death, no one here or the ANBU squad who was there at the time was to reveal it.

This actually allowed the ANBU squad in question to petition the council to be assigned permanently to Minato's side. The council had been confused, but agreed. They needed those who were in on the secret to watch Minato carefully in case of trouble.

Minato left the council room and called up Jiraiya to help him check the stability of the seal that was now tattooed to his stomach.

There were only a few minor adjustments to be made, and Jiraiya had been in awe over the seal.

"This allows the Kyuubi's chakra to mix with your own, am I right? To allow you to call upon it if it is needed." Jiraiya asked, as he looked at a specific seal of the array.

Minato nodded, and carefully traced the specific seal in question. "Yes, I had designed this seal awhile back for..."

At that moment it hit him. Kushina was gone. His best friend, was dead. Lost forever.

Jiraiya knew that, and once again held Minato close as he sobbed out his sorrow over the lost of the one person he knew he could count on always.

-line break-

A few days later, while Minato was working on the never ending paperwork, the door to the office banged open and let in two pink haired women, with moles underneath their eyes.

Minato blinked and stared.

The women took advantage of his stunned moment, and reached around to pick him up by the arms.

"You, are leaving a Kage Bunshin to sort through the paperwork and are coming with us."

"Wha?" Was his eloquent response. One of them rolled her eyes. "It's us, Sparrow and Swallow you idiot. You are going to go out and we are going to teach you about women."

Minato's eyes widened. "But..!"

The one on his left whirled on him. He noticed her mole was on the left side of face, just below her eye. "You are coming with us! We are not letting you go around deprived anymore!"

Blinking, Minato slowly nodded and set up a Kage Bunshin to care for the paperwork. The women happily escorted him out.

The one on the left spoke up. "By the way, I'm Uzumaki Umeko and that's my twin sister Momoko."

It was the beginning of a series of strange friendships.

-line break-

Apparently, the ANBU had convinced the council that being allowed to see him out of their uniforms was okay since it allowed them to be closer to him.

And boy did they get close.

The girls were somewhat crazy.

There was, of course, Sparrow and Swallow, the Uzumaki twins who didn't like the fact they randomly had _pink_ hair instead of the usual Uzumaki red brought up. They were competent medics though and were the first to make Minato consider them friends.

There was Mandarin Duck, who's real name was Hanajima Machi, a small time seal master, and okomiyaki addict.

Heron, aka Sugisaki Masami, who was a incredibly sisterly woman who could pry any kind of secrets from you. It came to no surprise that she specialized in interrogation. She also liked cute things, to the extreme.

And one can not forget Saotome Kasumi, who had a White Crane mask and was very good at the woman thing, as Minato liked to think of it. Not to mention was good with poison. Too good, some would say, since she couldn't do one thing that most would consider womanly – cook.

The guys could be just as nuts, too.

Nakamura Kenji had the Lion mask and was normally quite sane and calm – unless a few drinks got in him, in which his low tolerance for alcohol was revealed. Around the same time, Minato realized that the Kyuubi's presence made it nigh impossible to get drunk anymore.

Kuroba Masanari, the Golden Pheasant, was _really_ good at genjutsu. Even Minato had to work to break through his illusions. But he also was noted for a bad misfortune – he always somehow ended up in compromising positions with women. In the beginning, all but Minato – who usually was in disguise – would freak out. But as time went by they just rolled their eyes and got him in a more proper position again.

Hattori Hosohito, the Stag, liked to sit out of the way and just calmly play a game of go or read a book on go. Minato picked it up from him and had to say he enjoyed it, though he never really won a game against him.

The Eagle, Noboro Souji, was weird. He was quiet calm about everything – in a way that generally freaked everyone else. The weirdness that he walked through...despite that he was a powerful ninjutsu specialist.

Those who saw Takaya Yuki, the Peacock, would at first think he was a girl. That lead to an hilarious incident involving Jiraiya. Yuki-san was _definitely_ male and _hated_ it when he was mistaken for a girl, which happened often.

And there was Hideki Kakeru, the Pigeon. He was the youngest member and it generally showed. He was a supporting kind of ninja, who didn't truly specialize much, but made up for it with his ability to slide comfortably in to any role.

Finally, there was Uzumaki Eiichi. The Phoenix, he was always there with Minato, supporting him/her. He made Minato feel funny at times – he would suddenly get hot in his face at times and he could never really explain the fluttering in his stomach. And when he asked the girls, they merely giggled.

It took a random glance in a reflective surface while he was thinking about Eiichi to realize.

Oh. _She_ was in love, wasn't she?

-line break-

As time went on, Minato found it easier and easier to think of herself as...well a _her_. And she was quick to realize this had a lot to do with Eiichi.

Tonight, the stars were very beautiful.

Tonight, it was just her and Eiichi sitting on top of the Sandaime's head, looking across at the beginnings of her head being put on the Hokage Monument.

Tonight, she worked up the courage to tell Eiichi, and was terrified beyond words when he merely looked at her calmly.

"I was wondering when you would realize." He said, smiling softly. Minato felt a flash of irritation, at the fact he knew from the beginning, but was pulled away from that when he replied.

"I feel that way too."

And all she could do was cling to him and throw away the leftovers of her horrible childhood, now that she recognized it, and welcome her womanhood with open arms.

-line break-

Soon after that, came tragedy.

Umeko's boyfriend died in a tragic incident during a mission. But that wasn't what had Umeko so scared.

"I'm pregnant." She admitted with a sob. "I was going to tell him when he came back, but now..."

With the support of her twin and the others, who had grown to resemble something of an extended family, she embarked on that journey to motherhood.

And Minato felt a twinge of envy.

Which quickly turned to fear, as she realized that she was _also_ pregnant.

-line break-

Her being pregnant put a new spin on her secret. She had to now also hide the fact she was carrying a child as well as being a woman. Masanari's talents came in handy, helping people not notice the changes.

But there was other concerns – the birthing would weaken the seal and that would be bad, unless they set things up.

So as they planned to hide out in a cave just beyond Konoha, where they would monitor the seal and bring her child into the world.

But before that – there was something she had to do.

-line break-

"What?" Rei's voice invoked the same kind of fear it always had, but there was something else. Minato, realized that _she_ was scared. Terrified of something.

"I've decide to be a woman now." Minato repeated. "Because I'm in love and I'm going to have a baby."

Rei shrieked and jumped at her. "I won't allow it!" She shrieked, clawing at her face. "I won't have you take my place, I won't!"

But Minato remained resolved. The secret would be revealed, and not matter what could happen in the future, Minato wanted to do it with that secret stripped away.

The attendants came in and pulled away the shrieking Rei-sama. Minato brushed aside the concern for a medic and went outside to where Eiichi was waiting. She had a future to plan for.

A happy future.

-line break-

Umeko had a beautiful baby girl. At least that what she said. Kakeru said she had a hairless wrinkled monkey, which got him pounded on for. Minato had to agree though, the daughter didn't look like much right now.

Umeko laughed. "She'll grow and be very beautiful. I named her for her grandmother, Sakura."

Minato smiled. "Sakura, uh?"

Minato looked at the baby at Umeko's breast and wondered.

What was she going to call her child?

-line break-

The answer came from her sensei, of all people.

Minato had always liked reading, and when she was handed Jiraiya's first book, she had devoured it.

"I loved it!" She told him. "It read like it was a biography or something. Like it really happened." She said, holding his book, _**The Utterly Gutsy Ninja**_, aloof. "I'd love to meet someone like the main character."

Jiraiya laughed. "It's not that good – it's not a big seller or anything. Maybe I should have made it more explicit or something..."

Minato shook her head. "It's perfect." Then she had a thought. "You know, if I ever have a kid, I'd want them to grow up like this Naruto..."

She smiled. "I'd name them Naruto in fact, after this character!"

Jiraiya was surprised. "You sure about that? It's just a name I came up with while eating ramen..."

Minato laughed. "But it means 'maelstrom' doesn't it? I think it's perfect."

Jiraiya scratched the back of his head. "But...that would make me it's godfather – do you really want that?"

Minato smiled and hugged him, which caused him to briefly stiffen in shock, before he relaxed into it. "Nothing would be better – you are a great man sensei. I couldn't have anyone else be that."

Jiraiya laughed. "I'll hold you to that."

-line break-

Eiichi agreed with her on the name.

And ten months later from the conception, due to the extended pregnancy caused by her Jinchuuriki status, she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy.

He, unlike Sakura, came out looking beautiful, perhaps due to her Jinchuuriki status once again. The only thing wrong with the moment was that Umeko had died on a relatively simple mission gone wrong just a few days before. Her daughter was under the care of her grandparents as Momoko was busy with Minato.

And yet, she had never been more happy. Tears were streaming down her face with joy, and she wrapped herself in her new family.

Then things went wrong.

A strange man in a mask appeared and took her son hostage. She never knew it was possible to get up so soon after childbirth but she proved it wrong as she was quick to attack him.

Then he ripped the Kyuubi out of her.

Damaged beyond belief, yet somehow still alive, she quickly made a plan, using the rements of the Kyuubi's chakra in her to save her team, before running after the man, cutting his control between him and Kyuubi. She then did her best to warn the old Sandaime, but was dragged off by the man.

She got the feeling that he was an Uchiha, and putting it together he only could be Madara.

Summoning Gamabunta, she dragged them and the Kyuubi back to the cave. Using the chakra that Kushina had left her, she chained down the Kyuubi.

Ignoring Eiichi's protests, she summoned the Shinigami. Dragging the Yin Chakra into her, she then sealed the rest into her son.

She was caught by Eiichi and could only manage a little more before passing on.

-line break-

"You...Minato! Please you..."

Minato smiled. "It's okay. I'm doing this to save everyone. Naruto...he's the one Jiraiya talked about...I know it! Please, tell him when he becomes a shinobi about me...about you. He deserves to know the truth that no one else will know."

She coughed, and felt a little more of her energy drain away. She was starting to feel cold. Or was she hot?

"Eiichi. _I love you_. I love Naruto. I love Konoha. This is to protect all of that. I am the Yondaime Hokage, I can't do anything else."

Eiichi was crying and Minato reached up to catch one tear with a finger. "It will be alright. _It will be alright_. Because, I know you can do this. I know Naruto can do this."

She gave her best smile. "I believe. Please, let the Sandaime know that I wanted him to be seen as a hero."

She then turned and looked at the small body in her arms, crying softly in pain as the seal adjusted itself. "Shhh...don't cry Naruto. I'm going to seal some of my chakra within the seal, so I'll be able to talk to you three times, twice to aid you. I love you Naruto. Never forget that. Your mother loves you very much."

And so she sealed that chakra into her son and turned to Eiichi.

"Don't cry. You need to be strong for our son."

With one last kiss, she was gone.

And Eiichi could only howl his grief into the night, surrounded by the others who were just as fiercely crying.

-line break-

"What are you talking about!" Eiichi slammed his hands onto the reappointed Sandaime Hokage's desk. "What do you mean Naruto is to be treated like any other orphan!"

Sarutobi sighed, and placed his pipe to the side. "With the damage from the attack and not to mention the fear of Kyuubi, I have no choice."

Eiichi snarled. "What do you mean you have no choice? There is his aunt," They had covered for Minato by making it look like Umeko was the one who was the mother, rewriting mission reports to cover for it. Since she had been on maternal leave and those who would know the truth – her parents had died in the attack, the medics who attended her labor also ended that way – were gone, it was pretty much a full proof plan. "Momoko-san. She would gladly take him in!"

The Hokage sighed. "Naruto...when I announced he was the Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi, the reaction was far from positive. I will be announcing a new decree, that will make his Jinchuuriki status a S-class secret. No one who knows will be allowed to speak of it to those who do not, on pain of death or even speak of it out loud in the first place."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Sarutobi turned serious eyes to him. "Because he is a Jinchuuriki I cannot give him to anyone without problems. Some might want to make him a weapon and though others might truly care for him, the ones who do not would despise the family." He sighed. "It's the best I can do."

Eiichi glared molten fire at him. "Fine. Make it that way. But I want me and my team assigned to permanent duty as his guards, effective immediately."

The Sandaime considered his expression and weighed his options. "Yes." He said simply. "At least until he becomes a shinobi."

Eiichi blinked. "Do you really believe that?" He had to ask. Minato had been so sure as well... That thought opened a chasm in his heart and he had to forcibly smooth his features to hide his pain.

The Sandaime turned and looked at the photo of his successor. "His father was a great shinobi, and so was his mother. I have no doubt that he will be drawn to become a shinobi." He sighed and reached for his pipe. "It might also be the only way he can see that he will be able to prove himself..."

Eiichi bit his tongue. His _mother_ was the great shinobi. His father was right in the room, unable to speak up and tell the truth.

If only Minato had agreed to reveal her true gender before Naruto was born...

Eiichi nodded and saluted his Hokage, before exiting the office in a foul mood. Sarutobi winced as a few objects fell to the ground with harsh crashes at the slamming of the door.

The rest of the team had waited nearby. They stood to attention upon his appearance and one look at his face told them everything.

Kakeru cursed quite violently. The others agreed.

Eiichi pulled on his mask. It would be a long time before others other than his team would see his face again.

"We are allowed to guard Uzumaki Naruto." He said. "We will start immediately."

They nodded, placed their own masks on, and they went off with their _**Shunshin no Jutsu**_ leaving swirls of leaves in the air.

-end-

A/N: Wow...I honestly don't really like this.

But since I have it written down, I think I might be able to actually make it better. The ending sucks for one – not really what I wanted, but I'm not sure how else I want it yet.

The story, I admit, I like, but not how I currently put it down. A lot of things didn't make it into it – for example, the first chapter, which is basically Minato's childhood and Academy days that are briefly glimpsed here, was suppose to start from Rei's point of view, then slowly turn to Minato. I couldn't do that here.

And the Snow White elements didn't make it either – Rei is suppose to play a bigger role and is pretty much the villain of this piece, though I wanted to make her somewhat sympathetic. And the scene where it is _Rei_, in her threatened delusions, tells Madara about Minato's real gender and circumstance, thus allowing him to attack and release the Kyuubi, didn't make it either. Neither did the depth of the Namikaze clan, which I had planned to have a semi-blood limit like ability in there, like the Nara/Yamanaka/Akimichi families – a secret technique skill set, though definitely _not_ Hirashin. And the differences in newborn Sakura vs. newborn Naruto would have been explained later on, by Rei, soon after the attack, once again coming from her madness, since she actually deteriorates more with Minato's death. And there was suppose to be a suggestion that, like Snow White, Minato could be awakened from the sleep of death later on – that's actually a major plot point of my maybe-yes-maybe-no sequel of the real complete story.

Basically, a lot got left out here, which, I suppose, is okay, since this isn't the complete story as much as a guideline for me later, that I decided to post so you guys – that's the reviewers – could tell me if it has potential.

The complete and complex story, if it gets enough thumbs up and I can work up the urge, will be called _**What The Mirror Sees**_.

My pre-story here, though, still actually has some elements I might end up tacking onto an extra author's note/chappie thingy to explain more. But only if I get a lot of questions about them. At which point it will be easier to just put them down in one thing, instead of answering the same questions with different reviews...mostly because I'm lazy like that...

Okay, feed back please! Reviewers get magic cupcakes for long, detailed, _helpful_ reviews!

~ Love Psycho


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